As a consumer, you have the right to be heard. The power of thousands of consumer complaints can make a huge impact on the fight against the vicious cycle of payday loans.

Payday loans are small, one-time loans aimed toward consumers who find themselves in need of a temporary financial fix. They are a form of predatory lending due to their short payback periods and extremely high interest rates.

Consumers who take out payday loans often find themselves trapped in a cycle of debt that lasts for months and results in accumulated interest rates as high as 780%. That small loan suddenly becomes a huge debt and can be very bad news for a consumer’s credit and financial situation.

But it doesn’t have to be this way! Together we can end the suffering caused by predatory lending. There are organizations and tools in place designed to give the consumer a voice and minimize the power of these lending agents.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is, in the organization’s own words, “a 21st century agency that helps consumer finance markets work by making rules more effective, by consistently and fairly enforcing those rules, and by empowering consumers to take more control over their economic lives.”

One of HFLA of Northeast Ohio’s goals is to fight unfair payday loans in the state of Ohio. We are extremely passionate about this mission as we often work with clients who have fallen into the vicious cycle of payday loan debt.

On March 20, 2017, our Executive Director Michal Marcus appeared on NPR to discuss payday loan legislation reform and talk about HFLA’s work with payday loans.

The following is adapted from that conversation. To hear the discussion for yourself, click here.

The Ohioans for Payday Loan Reform Coalition reached out to HFLA after Michal’s interview on NPR, and provided us with the following information for anyone who may be interested in House Bill 123 and the current reform efforts:

Dear Supporters of Payday Loan Reforms:

The payday lending reform bill, Ohio House Bill 123, has been assigned to the House Government Accountability & Oversight Committee, chaired by Rep. Louis “Bill’’ Blessing III, R-District 29, who represents part of Hamilton County. [Read more…]

Yesterday, our Executive Director Michal Marcus was on NPR’s Sound of Ideas to discuss payday lending. She was on a panel with State Representative Kyle Koehler and Keith Davis, a Financial Capabilities Counselor with Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland. They discussed payday lending and its implications on borrowers, as well as a new bill proposed to close a loophole in current legislation that allows payday lenders to get around 2008’s legislation, which capped interest rates at 28%. Through this loophole, payday lenders have continued to lend with interest rates sometimes reaching as high at 700% APR. Listen to the podcast here to learn more!